Patients in Botshabelo, Free State, have expressed their frustration with the lack of healthcare services at Potlako Motlohi clinic. Since mid-February, patients have been turned away by clinic staff, citing the offline data-capturing computer system as the reason for their inability to receive medical attention.
Tshokolo Sanda recounted a particularly distressing experience on Thursday, 20 February, when he and other patients spent over eight hours at the clinic only to be told to come back the next day when the system might be working. Sanda expressed his suspicion that the staff were deliberately punishing them, leaving them unattended for hours on end.
Sanda suggested that the clinic could have resorted to manual methods of record-keeping, such as using registration books, before transferring the information to the computer system once it was back online. The lack of alternative solutions left patients feeling neglected and angry.
The situation escalated to the point where staff and patients were on the brink of physical confrontation. Thabelo Ramosoeu, a patient in need of chronic medication, criticized the workers for remaining in the clinic without providing any assistance to the waiting patients. He highlighted the unnecessary tension caused by the refusal to revert to manual processes in the absence of the computer system.
Calls for intervention have been made by patients like Busisiwe Ramphalla, who threatened to involve the Office of Public Protector in addressing the issue. Dina Maphike, a member of the ward committee responsible for health, acknowledged the patients’ grievances and emphasized the recurring nature of complaints against the clinic staff.
Teboho Thabane, the Secretary of the South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO) in Mangaung, revealed that numerous complaints have been received regarding the lack of services at Potlako Motlohi clinic. Thabane expressed a willingness to take drastic measures, including the closure of the clinic and the redeployment of workers to other facilities, if the situation does not improve.
Despite attempts to seek clarification from the Department of Health, spokesperson Mondli Mvambi did not respond to inquiries about the clinic’s operations. With approximately 200 patients visiting the facility daily, many of whom endure long distances to access healthcare services, the urgency of resolving the issues at Potlako Motlohi clinic cannot be overstated.
